Sludge
metal has not run out of ideas just yet. On its surface, the Australian duo’s
latest “Untitle” could be accused of lacking color. The tones and atmosphere
recall acts like The Melvins or Big Business, a sound hundreds of bands ape.
What sets DEAD
apart is their pacing. The arrangements are exquisitely layered incrementally,
so rather than relying on a droning effect DEAD elects subtle changes in sound or effects
added one at a time to build an ensemble of punishing heaviness. Their latest
record displays an ambitious band on a goal to prove how multi-faceted they
are.

“Untitle” is album two of a four LP set
the band is amusingly calling “The
Trilogy.” It is not abundantly clear how “Untitle” relates to the first record, “Captains of Industry”, but the release continues DEAD’s
brand of sludge metal accompanied by dark abstract themes. The album opens with
“Grizzly”, a track that encompasses
what the band does best while foreshadowing the record as a whole. The track
begins softly and treads toward a noisy climax one sound at a time. The two
halves of the song could not be more dissonant. While the first half uses an eloquently
picked guitar and whispered vocals the second half utilizes shouted
double-tracked vocals, a buzz saw of a bassline, and booming snare. DEAD
has a knack for sounding methodical for one minute and completely unhinged the
next.

The
best example of this formula is on the last track, “Line ‘Em All Up”. As the minutes pass, more and more haunting
noises creep toward the surface of the mix while the vocal harmonies drone on.
The track’s low frequencies grumble at the bottom while the high pitched screeching
guitars aggravate any soothing repetitive qualities that the bass and vocals
provide. The tracks sandwiched between the aforementioned vary with elements of
drone, noise, and heavy riffs. The band transitions through these sounds
seamlessly and combines them for a powerful overall sound. The arrangements on
“Untitle” are so meticulously
well-crafted and varied it allows all five tracks to distinguish themselves
clearly while contributing to an obvious overall sonic theme.

On
“Untitle”, DEAD attempts a little bit of
everything and works to see how they can make these different sounds cohesive.
Similar to a release like “Lysol” or
“Amplifier Worship” there are a lot
of different elements and genres explored on a track by track basis and DEAD
do all of them pretty well. Ambitious releases can sometimes feel bloated or
disjointed, but DEAD
avoid this by keeping the tracks relatively short (no track eclipses ten
minutes) and track list short as well. All of the material feels essential to
this release and contributes to the greater whole which is a dirty,
ostentatious, diverse release.

Noisy,
experimental and not without its moments of bristling intensity, “I Ate Myself
…”is a record that piques interest
with seven chaotic, constantly shifting tracks bursting with a myriad of
influences, underpinned by a borderline disregard for the safe confines of
genre.

“I Ate Myself to Grow Twice As Big”
CD//DD//LP track listing

1). Melæna

2). Coproliet

3). Coccinelle

4). Monuntainesque II

5). Apollo 10

6). Mountainesque I

7). Juice

The Review

Belgian
noisesmiths 30,000
Monkiesreturn with their second studio album ‘I Ate Myself To Grow Twice As Big’, seven chaotic, constantly
shifting tracks bursting with a myriad of influences, underpinned by a
borderline disregard for the safe confines of genre.

‘Melæna’kicks in with hoarse,
anguished vocals set in amongst cycling, fuzzed out riffing. It all seems far
off, echoing, but the drums usher in a main riff composed of heavy tom work and
whining, jarring chords. Muscular, overdriven bass raises its head, and the track
alternates between these two patterns before dropping into a hardcore infused
run that’s shaken up with heavy, frantic kick work and maddening guitar lines.
It’s chaotic, a tad sloppy, but wonderfully organic.

‘Coproliet’is a tumbling rush of density
and urgency, military snare building then stopping suddenly, bright, fragile,
strummed chords replacing it before being replaced in turn with a mass of
groaning, feedback laden guitars. ‘Coccinelle’is a roiling lump of sub-doom guitars and unsettling high-pitched
vocals, chords growing in strength, well-spaced and threatening. The atonal
chants build by layers, and it grows into a more upbeat affair, picking up
pace, locked in tight, exhausting itself before lapsing into meditative noise.

‘Mountainesque II’drives
from the get go, enraged well-bottom shouts and thumping drums powering through
a thicket of tremolo guitars and whining feedback, bleak and paranoid, the
crescendo of a track stretched far beyond normal limits. ‘Apollo 10’swells with
‘radio’ noise, coming in waves, spreading unease, punctured by haunting shouts,
before wild, scraping guitars and clattering drums throw things for a loop,
before things break apart with whining noise and echoing, overlapping vox
loops.

‘Mountainesque I’ is like a man railing against being trapped in an
80’s film score, reverb drenched shouts fighting against rushing synth layers,
drums and guitar occasionally raising their heads to belt out grinding chords.
Closer ‘Juice’kicks in with
dreamy synth and slow, pounding drums. Strident, barked vocals come in, along
with big, ringing chords, before everything falls down a spiralling rabbit hole
of grinding guitars, descending drums and sweeping synths. It’s intense,
dramatic, and bleak stuff, which is offset by the tracks’ zenith – layers of
bright, ghostly synths that evoke the slightly unsettling climax of a
psychedelic space opera.

Noisy,
experimental and not without its moments of bristling intensity, “I Ate Myself …”is a record that piques interest with its cleverly constructed
tracks. But, the self-same tracks struggle to find true individual identity, to
stand apart from one another fully, which isn’t helped by a recording that
lacks overall dynamic impact, seeing everything played safely towards an aural middle
ground. A solid enough release, it sadly won’t leave a lasting impression on
all but the most ardent noise fan.

Unbroken
by way of pure unrelenting tone, Order of the Owl are no
strangers to pushing the boundaries of their Atlanta roots. In the years since
the debut album, “In the Noon of the
After Day”, they have worked to push themselves into more than one genre of
talent. The trio had replaced drummer Corey Pallon, with Demonaut
basher Dwayne Jones, along with Casey Yarbourough on guitars and Brent Anderson
crooning his demonic vocals and bass.

Their new album, “We Have Come to Collect our Crown”
opens the listener to an expanse of new atmospheric layered psychedelic
brutality. Engineered by Josh Lamar, in their hometown of Atlanta, Order of the Owl have stayed true to their influences and
cross into doom grooves and sludge laden riffs. The album also features Juan
Montoya of Killer Be Killed on Guitar solos on “Resurrection”, “Wood Valley”, and “Golden
Dawn”.

The first single, “Hell Ride”, which we are exclusively
streaming below exudes a swaying groove that lurches back and forth like a pure
Cocaine Super Demon. The unrelenting drums of Dwayne Jones, is a driving force
laying the foundation of the song, while the shredding of Casey Yarbourough
opens the gates across the river Styx. This new album has an edge that crests
on their journey atop the mountain to take their crowns, as they have surely
earned them with this album. Check out this mammoth track
below and the album is available to preorder here

In their first release since the 2015 album ‘Terminal’ (review here)Limb have recorded a version of Andrew WK’s‘Party Hard’ and put their own twist
on proceedings. In a light-hearted and momentary move away from their doom and
stoner roots Limb have put together this track to
advertise their upcoming dates which have been booked for mainland Europe but
start with a one off show at Hard Rock Hell’s‘Doom vs Stoner’ festival in Sheffield
this weekend. You can check out the track below and you can Catch them partying hard here…

There
are so many different influences bubbling under the surface, the album is
crammed with more ideas and curve balls than many experienced bands pack in to
a whole album and will undoubtedly catch many listeners of guard. For a band to
be writing at this level on their second album is staggering and dare I say it
bodes well for a bright future! A total gem of an album that defiantly deserves
a place on anyone’s top ten list of the year

“Before The
Shore” DD//LP track listing:

1).
Lady Freedom

2).
The Shore

3).
Cheating Pain

4).
Walking in the Graveyard (Bloody Witch)

5).
Candles and Flowers

6).
Northern Sky

7).
Earth’s Last Song

The Review:

HeviSike
Records have
been active for a few years now and have slowly built a reputation for quality
releases. Their latest release by Bright
Curse, in the form of “Before the
Shore” and their second album is a gem that lives up to, and enhances that
reputation, it is made up of seven tracks of Retro Drenched Riffs. It equally
lulls you in to chilled grooves then kicks like an angry mule,

“Lady Freedom”, starts with a shout of
Ready? Before launching into a riff Uriah Heep would have been proud off. Roman
Daut’s melodic yet strong vocals underline the quality of the song coupled with
a strong repetitive riff, with hints UFO
running through it and a killer guitar solo to match, this is an excellent
opening statement that lays out their stall. “The Shore” opens with another stomping riff then throws a curveball
as the vocals come in quiet, invoking a reflective tone to the music, with the
Lyrics drawing you into the story. It then explodes briefly into a chorus that
will go around and around in your head. It’s perfectly paced for another lovely
solo before a rocking conclusion to the song.

“Cheating Pain” starts with an almost Wolfmother
type vocal melody accompanied by tasteful playing from the rhythm department.
The chorus recalls a grunge vibe with some excellent backing vocals before a
spoken word middle section hit you like a cross between The Doors & the “Apocalypse Now” soundtrack. The
excellently named “Walking in a
Graveyard (Bloody Witch)” starts with another powerful riff before a strong
vocal refrain, again taking the music in unexpected directions. A Sabbath
influenced jazzy guitar tone underlines this mood. Normal service is resumed by
time it reaches the chorus as Lizzy style riffing ensues, complete with a
full bore guitar solo that allows the rhythm section to open up and roar

“Candles and Flowers” packs an Iommi
style riff and again some understated playing before kicking up a gear with a
monster second riff that gets another strong Lizzy groove going. It settles
into this headspace complete with excellent call & response chorus. They
pull of the trick of moving between quieter moments and huge riffs and for me
this is the strongest song on the album so far. “Northern Sky” starts with a subtle Hammond Organ underpinning
soulful vocals and adds another flavour to an album already packed full of
them. This is the most melodic song on album and perhaps the closest to a
ballad, with beautiful and delicate guitar playing complemented by the Hammondwhich
recalls Deep
Purpleat their most vulnerable,
before it unleashes a Jon Lord style solo that will get your foot tapping. It
has a huge chorus and will surely be a fan favourite live.

“Earth's Last Song” starts with a laid
back groove and bluesy guitar playing reminiscent of the ‘Purple vibe present on the previous song. It evolves into a chorus
than can only be classed as epic. It builds and builds, to a guitar solo that
just lifts the song to a higher level with plenty of wah pedal abuse. The
climax of song is the chorus and the eight minutes plus have gone by in flash.

Overall
this is an album that on the surface sits nicely within retro stoner scene, but
on repeated plays reveals much more substance than that. There are so many
different influences bubbling under the surface, the album is crammed with more
ideas and curve balls than many experienced bands pack in to a whole album and
will undoubtedly catch many listeners of guard. For a band to be writing at
this level on their second album is staggering and dare I say it bodes well for
a bright future!

A
total gem of an album that defiantly deserves a place on any one’s top ten list
of the year

Seattle noise makers Into The Storm
have returned with their latest effort, “Where
the Merfalo Roam”. The album which will be
released on November 11th via Alive and Breathing Records,
is a complex album containing ten compositions that have been painstakingly
pieced together riff by riff. Fans of Baroness,
Mastodon and Pelican should
appreciate this album since it captures the essence of those bands at times,
but also contains its own unique flavour. For example, the first half of
the song “Maturin” contains a brass section and then
shifts to noisy blasts of heavy for the remainder of the song. There’s
even some honky-tonk, chicken pickin’ to be found in “Truck Van Trailer” hidden near the end of the sludge infused
chaotic riffing. In conclusion, Into the Storm have
created their most progressive and impressive work to date since their
inception in 2010.

Today at The Sludgelord we can
offer you a taste of this monstrous record in the form of new video for the
track “Maths”, which is undoubtedly one
of the album highlights . My calculations
are that this track is a stonewall face melter.
“Where the
Merfalo Roam” can be preordered here

Thursday, 29 September 2016

Personally
speaking, one of the strongest and prominent scenes in metal over the years is Chicago, with many of America’s most prominent bands,
hailing from the windy city. Ministry and the Wax Trax scene, Big Black,
Shellac,
The Jesus Lizard,
Trouble,Touch and Go
Records are many of the names that have imprinted upon music fans
and the history of the Chicago
music scene over the last 30 years.

Today the vibrancy of the Chicago scene continues with
emergence of bands past and present such as, Buried At Sea, Indian,
Lord Mantis,
Bongripper,
The Skull,
Yakuza,
The Atlas
Moth, Scientist the list is endless. Indeed if an album is from
the doom scene, if it is heavy and it was recorded in Chicago, then one man,
Sanford Parker was likely to have recorded it, which leads us directly onto
today’s featured band Faces of the Bog.

A psychedelic tinged, doom influenced, sludge/prog
four piece Faces
of the Bog,hail
from Humboldt Park, home of Emperor Cabinets andcontinue the tradition of
excellent bands rising from Chicago underground and their acid soaked blend of
sludge was recently put to tape by Sanford at Electric Audio in the form of
their debut album “Ego Death”, which
is a fantastic blast to the senses.“Ego Death” is set for release on 4th
October, but today in order to whet your insatiable appetite for crushing
music, we are streaming the album in full below.You can Pre-order“Ego Death” here

Wednesday, 28 September 2016

With only five
tracks, the band have placed all their energy into creating an album of depth
without any meandering.The real centrepiece of this album is “Green
Cathedral”, though. Indeed it is as good a piece of music as you will hear this
year.“The Dark Hereafter” marks
Winterfylleth's continuing trend of excellent albums, Superb and
atmospheric stuff- savour it.

Winterfylleth are certainly my
favourite UK black metal outfit. They return here with an album that takes in
both focused blasts of darkness and epic sprawling soundscapes. With only five
tracks, the band has placed all their energy into creating an album of depth
without any meandering. The band sticks to the task at hand and make every
second count.

The
rather ferocious opening title track recalls more Scandinavian outfits, while
the familiar “Pariah's Path” is
given an extra something here. Naturally, this being a Winterfylleth release, the
record is best digested through headphones and whilst undertaking some kind of
journey (preferably in an area of natural beauty) but it works fantastically as
a mood piece played on my front room stereo and much like its predecessors it
takes you on ajourney even if you don't
set foot outside.

“Ensigns of Victory” is a stirring and
triumphant sounding track, utilising time changes aplenty and a surprising
dynamic range (not easy in BM). The real centrepiece of this album is “Green Cathedral”, though. As good a
piece of music as you will hear this year and encapsulating all that is great
about the band and all that is great about nature- while highlighting how it
gets further away from many of us in our daily lives. The track is epic in
scope and performance and it crystallises the bands raison d'etre beautifully.
It shifts sounds and moods to great effect and is a perfect soundtrack to the
coming changing seasons.

“Led Astray in the Forest Dark” (a cover of Ulver's"Capitel I: I Troldskog Faren Vild") closes this impressive set with some interesting
and effective choral type vocals and an excellent mix allowing the bass to
shine through. Overall, this marks Winterfylleth's continuing trend of excellent
albums- now at number five, discounting the three CD box set of a year or so
past. Superb and atmospheric stuff- savour it.

A CONSTANT KNOWLEDGE OF DEATH is a collective
from both sides of the United States – from sunny Southern California to chilly
Boston, Massachusetts. ACKOD was founded by
James Goldmann (Vocals, Drums, Bass, Guitars) and Aaron Gutierrez (Guitars) in
2012 as an outlet for their more experimental metal work, but eventually
expanded to include Connor McCullough (Guitars, Bass, Engineering, Mixing,
Production) and Mark Rivas (Session Drums). The collective is a labor of love
between these four that transcends distance and time to create truly
astonishing records that cannot be summed up in one genre.

“Vol. I: Enculturation”
was released in November of 2015. The album was met with high praise, with
reviewers and listeners alike complimenting the diverse song writing, sonic and
vocal styles, ranging from driving progressive metal to ambient electronic
instrumentals.

“Vol. II: Organic Emotions,”
the new album from ACKOD, takes this even
further by expanding their influences into the realms of symphonic metal,
acoustic post-rock and sweeping landscapes. Produced and mixed in-house by Connor
McCullough, Magnus Lindberg (Cult of Luna, The Ocean)
provided his mastering services to make the record truly reach its full
potential. Between the destructive guitar riffs, unrelenting drums and piercing
lyrics, “Vol. II”sets itself apart
as one of the most dynamic records of 2016.

“Vol. II: Organic Emotions”
will be released digitally on September 30TH, 2016 and available to order here. You
can stream the album in full below

“Path Of Eight”
is a fine demonstration of a band evolving their sound without losing sight of
what made them great in the first place. Mouth of the Architect have come into
their own with this record and hopefully it will gain them some much deserved
attention.

It’s been a while since I checked in with Mouth of the
Architect, my last contact being their 2008 grand opus “Quietly”. Their new LP “Path of Eight” demonstrates that the Ohio post-metallers have
undergone quite a metamorphosis in the intervening years.

The shimmering haze of “Ritual
Bell” opens the album in subtly hypnotic style. Faraway vocals draw you in,
alternating with restrained bursts of distortion to provide a quietly ominous
start to proceedings. From here, the album begins to slowly unfold with the
heavy psychedelia of “Fever Dream”
and “The Priestess”. The bands
post-metal roots are still evident on these tracks but the prominence of
keyboards and cleaner vocals bring a more distinct character to their sound.

Things take a heavier turn with “Sever The Soul”. An intense combination of intricate guitar lines
and outbursts of gnarly riffage, it brings to mind “Red”-era Baroness and sees “Path of Eight” shift up a gear. The second half of the album sees Mouth of the
Architect ramp up the distortion while maintaining their new
exploratory tendencies to great effect. “Drown
The Old” wrings maximum results from the classic quiet/loud dynamic, tender
melodic verses giving way to skull-crushing choruses, culminating in a
punishing riff onslaught. The double header of “Stretching Out” and “Fallen
Star” sees them hone their cosmic post-metal attack to perfection before
signing off with the glorious title track. A four-minute distillation of this
awesome album, it sees the band really cut loose and unleash some unhinged
fretboard mangling.

“Path Of Eight” is
a fine demonstration of a band evolving their sound without losing sight of
what made them great in the first place. Mouth of the Architect have come into their
own with this record and hopefully it will gain them some
much deserved attention.

Tuesday, 27 September 2016

Trying to describe Meshuggah’s sound is a
challenge.The only way I can put it is
that they’re a musical cascade: a never-ending barrage of sound and heaviness
pounding down upon you.Don’t expect or
ballad or moments of levity here, this is a relentless tide which you will not
escape from.Tracks like ‘MonstoCity’
and ‘Our Rage Won’t Die’ are pummelling tracks of new material which can easily
be slotted in to their live setlist and not seem out of place.In fact, the same could be said for any of
those songs on display here: like a chain forged by Vulcan, there’s not a weak
link present.It all hits, and hits
hard.

“The Violent Sleep of Reason” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. Clockworks (7:15)

2. Born In Dissonance (4:34)

3. MonstroCity (6:13)

4. By The Ton (6:04)

5. Violent Sleep Of Reason (6:51)

6. Ivory Tower (4:59)

7. Stifled (6:31)

8. Nostrum (5:15)

9. Our Rage Won't Die (4:41)

10. Into Decay (6:32)

The Review:

In all honesty, there is one band that should spring
into the mind of every metalhead when the word ‘djent’ is uttered.In fact, if you believe there is a hierarchy
among prog and djent bands, then Sweden’s Meshuggah is king: hell, the term
itself was coined from the sound made by these guys.Irrespective of whether you like or loathe
the term, you can’t help but marvel at the uniqueness at which these people
decided to create music.Innovative,
gifted, heavy, these guys make heavy music like ordinary people make
toast.Seriously, it’s almost annoying
how easy they make it all look.2012 saw
the release of Meshuggah’s
most commercially successful album to date (“Koloss” and, seriously, get yourself a copy if you haven’t
already); October 7th, 2016 sees their return to your speakers with “The Violent Sleep of Reason”.Best warn those things in advance, because it
is going to get heavy.

Trying to describe Meshuggah’s sound is a
challenge.The only way I can put it is
that they’re a musical cascade: a never-ending barrage of sound and heaviness
pounding down upon you.Don’t expect or
ballad or moments of levity here, this is a relentless tide which you will not
escape from.Fans of earlier releases
like “obZen”and “Nothing”will find themselves comforted by the
fact that Meshuggah’s
core groove has not been changed, which gives a good foundation in the
familiar, but is then built on with track after track of great and vibrant new
music, building something you can truly marvel at.

Considering 2017 will be the 30th
anniversary of Meshuggah’s
inception, their sound feels more contemporary than classic.Their rabid desire to explore and create
means each album seems to advance upon the previous album, rather than rigidly
stick to ‘safe’ boundaries and go no further.Tracks like ‘MonstoCity’ and
‘Our Rage Won’t Die’ are pummelling
tracks of new material which can easily be slotted in to their live set list
and not seem out of place.In fact, the
same could be said for any of those songs on display here: like a chain forged
by Vulcan (the Roman God of metalworking, not the Star Trek dudes), there’s not
a weak link present.It all hits, and
hits hard.

Meshuggah released ‘Nostrum’
as a preview for listeners and, personally speaking, it was a great bit of bait
to put onto the hook.Once you took a
bite of that dissonant, eerie, polyrhythmic slab of raw sound, that was
it.Reel you in, gut you, cook you, eat
you.Meshuggah had me on a
plate.“The Violent Sleep of Reason”is
made by a band that is the same age as me, yet shows no sign of strain or
weakness.Their sound has never been a
more vital alternative to the mainstream than now, and this latest offering
will no doubt be hailed as one of the pivotal albums of 2016.Wake up and get yourself a copy as soon as
you can.

Band Submissions

To those bands who have recently issued their first demo or album via bandcamp and would like to be featured on our 666 Pack Review or considered for a full review or stream please contact Aaron via email including your EPK, band bio, album file or download code, including artwork.

To those bands issuing their sophomore record and so on and would like to be considered for a review or stream on the blog. Get in touch using the same address above

We will consider bands from any genre but exclusively stoner, sludge, doom, psych, post-metal, experimental, black-metal etc. (Whilst I would like to respond to every email, this is not always possible.) Thanks